Study: Action games improve eyesight

The benefits-versus-harms-of-gaming debate continued this week with a plus for those in support of the positive effects of spending time with a controller. Researchers at The University of Rochester published a paper in Psychological Science this week regarding a study on the effects of gaming and eyesight.

The study found a noticeable difference between the visual acuity of subjects after a session of action-oriented gaming, according to the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle.

Those who played the first-person shooter Unreal Tournament (the paper did not say which version of Unreal Tournament was played) experienced greater improvements to visual acuity and peripheral vision than subjects who had played Tetris.

Professor Daphne Bavelier, who ran the study, said the research gives hope to those who feared the part of the brain that manages visual acuity could not improve after adulthood. She also said that gaming, because of participation by subjects, likely has a greater affect on eyesight than passive media, such as movies or television shows.